Friday, May 6, 2011

"Forever Home"

I'm not sure where I first heard the term Forever House. I'm sure it was somewhere in the blogosphere, or perhaps twitter.

At the time we were living in our adorable little cape cod, happy as clams & maxed out on upgrades. We had talked about totally redoing the kitchen or adding a second bathroom but knew that as soon as we did this our house would turn from a starter home to a family home and the house itself was not large enough to contain a whole family. Jus, me, Jack, Edie & Layla, sure, but a family?

When we bought our first house the plan was to live there for at least 5 years. Modernize what we could, bump up the curb appeal and build some equity. I imagined that we would bring our first child home from the hospital to this house, where we would have created a nursery space on the other side of our bedroom.

While Jus & I have always kept a running list of houses we love but buying a new house wasn't on our radar. When my grandpa called my mom and told her she had to see a bank owned house Jus & I tagged along. After we went in the back door, climbed up three feet to the kitchen, walked through one kitchen to the dining room I turned to Jus and said "I want this house."

Fast forward 7 months and here we are, slowly making the Behemoth ours.

The kitchen will be what I decide, we have rolled on the paint and we have argued about who should trim the bushes. This is the home that we have worked on and the one that we will call home for the next several years.

But forever?

That's a pretty significant word  and we just aren't sure if we're ready to make that type of commitment. I've always dreamed of living in a bungalow or loft and Jus loves the house across the street and dreams of a house on a cliff.

So for now we'll call the Behemoth ours and cherish the time we've put into it while realizing that somewhere along the way it might not be ours anymore.

Do you think you'll find a forever home or is an ok for now home the kind you crave?

15 comments:

hayley said...

right now, at 21/about to be 22 and in college. i'm okay with whatever. but when i think of buying a home, and making it my own/having a family. i think i want a forever home. this may be because i just bawled watching season 22 of parenthood and i like the idea of parents keeping houses for generations :)

Randa said...

I would love to buy/build that one house and have it forever but I don't know if that's a reality or not. I know our family size may change or we may want to live in a different part of the world, etc. But I like the idea of a forever home.

:0]

Jessica said...

"Forever home" is generally a term used with rescue/shelter animals when they get adopted.

If I could build my dream house I'd live in it until I die, but with my husband joining the Air Force... it's not likely to happen for at least 20 years.

Autumn @ Autumn All Along said...

I am afraid to ever feel I will have a forever home...because what happens when you leave it because of a job transfer or whatever may happen? I just hope I always like where we live. I think I decided that because my Mom had her dream home once and we did have to move and she still hasn't gotten over it.

Krysten @ Why Girls Are Weird said...

I always assumed I'd be the type of person that once I had a family we would stay in that house forever. However, D and I both come from families who only live in a house for a few years and then move. And Dustin wants to be that way too. So I don't think we'll ever have a forever home =-( Makes me a bit sad to think about.

Layla said...

I'm a nomad, I went to four five elementary schools, two middle schools and three high schools, because we moved so often. I think that has stuck with me, and I've never wanted to own a house for fear that I'd want to move too soon afterward. I sometimes wish we could do certain things to the house we rent, but it's also comforting to know we can just leave it when we get to move to another state. However, once I finally do settle down and own a home, I can't say that it will be our forever home, but it will be our "this is our HOME home."

Layla said...

Er, I forgot the dash between four - five....I can't remember if kindergarten and 1st grade where at different schools or not. :P

Deidre said...

I struggle with this at all. When i buy a house I imagine it is going to be the forever home type. But that doesn't quite seem practical with the life I lead..

Abby said...

Hmm this is an interesting question. I think some of it has to do with how comfortable you are with a big change like that. I have lived in the same house since I was 3 years old in an area that, at this point, if we moved we wouldn't be able to afford to move back-it is now that expensive!! I think when I am able to purchase a house, it will most likely be for the long haul.

Amanda said...

i know what you mean! we bought a triplex and it's great for us because we have a lot of space but also our mortgage is being paid for by other people so that feels good. we'll likely keep the house forever but as our own home? not too sure! it is a huge commitment!

Anonymous said...

i've never heard that term. i don't think it is one i would consider...but my husband lived in the same house for his whole life and it seems to be a real part of him. i liked our houses but we moved about 4 times in my childhood soo...

Meghan said...

Great question! I am not really sure if we will find a "forever" home right away, or if it will take time. We currently live in a tiny condo but we absolutely love living right downtown. We've also said that we'd rather find a house we love, but is reasonable because we don't want all of our $$$ going to a mortgage, etc so we can still travel and what not. Only time will tell:)

Sandy a la Mode said...

right now, we're in an OK home for us but not a forever home. i know that once we have a few kids, this house will be way too small.. we're already using up all the closet space in all 3 rooms for our clothes only haha!!

steph c said...

I think it's great if you can find a forever home, but do I think it's realistic? Eh, not really. Not to sound depressing! But I don't really know much.. we still haven't bought yet :(

I think the Behemoth with be around in your lives for a while though ;) It must, with all the work you're putting into it!!

Amanda said...

I really don't think that at your age you have to tie yourself to a forever house yet. Especially since you are thinking you won't have children anytime soon. It's fun to think about the future, but I like the pace you are taking things right now....it really seems to work for the two of you. :)